UK-led COP aviation declaration – “International Aviation Climate Ambition Coalition” (IACAC) – too weak to clean up flying
The “International Aviation Climate Ambition Coalition” (IACAC) has been launched by the UK government at the COP26 climate change summit. Its declaration is too weak to reduce flying’s climate impact. It relies too much on ICAO’s CORSIA scheme to try to limit some aviation emissions. The number of global air passengers and cargo is expected to increase significantly over the next few decades, but the CORSIA scheme will be ineffective, and airlines are resistant to measures that would reduce demand for flights. At least now the UK has included international aviation in its national carbon target, which means cuts (or net reductions) will have to be made – but most countries have not even done that. The text of the IACAC merely contains non-committal statements such as “supporting”, “taking steps”, “working together”, “ensuring”, “advancing”, “promoting” and “convening.” One commitment is: “Promoting the development and deployment, through international and national measures, of sustainable aviation fuels that reduce lifecycle emissions …avoiding competition with food production for land use and water supply.”
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UK-led COP aviation declaration too weak to clean up flying
10.11.2021
Transport & Environment
The International Aviation Climate Ambition Coalition launched at the COP26 climate change summit in Glasgow.
The UK-led international climate ambition declaration for aviation announced today is too weak to reduce flying’s climate impact, says Transport & Environment. In relying on the UN’s International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), the signatories make the same mistakes as previous efforts to tackle aviation emissions, says the group.
The declaration, signed by the UK, France and the US, among others, recognises that the number of global air passengers and cargo is expected to increase significantly over the next few decades, putting significant pressure on the planet. It calls on states to observe the Paris Agreement’s goal of holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels.
But, T&E warns, relying on ICAO and its carbon offsetting scheme to achieve net-zero in the long-term, will be just another distraction from real measures to clean up flying in the near term.
Matt Finch, UK policy manager at T&E, said: “The world is crying out for strong action to address global aviation emissions. This is not it. We cannot let this declaration detract us from the fact that individual countries should be going further and faster.”
Most worryingly, says T&E, is that in relying on ICAO the signatories have failed to take the most essential step to address aviation emissions by including these emissions in their national climate targets – something the UK, who led the declaration, committed to itself earlier this year.
Matt Finch concluded: “At a COP dedicated to raising ambition, it’s disappointing that these states continue to rely on the UN’s deeply flawed aviation agency. The signatories should follow the UK’s lead and take the essential first step of including their share of aviation emissions in their individual country budgets. Clean aviation will remain grounded so long as states continue to shirk their individual responsibility to act.”
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The UK Government’s website
Policy paper
COP 26 declaration: International Aviation Climate Ambition Coalition
Published 10 November 2021
Declaration
We, the ministers and representatives of states, participating in the inaugural meeting of the International Aviation Climate Ambition Coalition at the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, in Glasgow this 10 November 2021.
Being both parties to the Paris Agreement, and contracting states to the Convention on International Civil Aviation 1944 (“the Chicago Convention”).
Recognising international aviation’s material contribution to climate change through its CO2 emissions, along with its additional, but less well-defined, contribution associated with non-CO2 emissions.
Also recognising that despite the impact of COVID-19, the international aviation industry and the number of global air passengers and volume of cargo is expected to increase significantly over the next 30 years.
Acknowledging the impact of COVID-19 on the global aviation sector and the need to develop initiatives that enable the aviation industry to continue to build back better and grow in a sustainable manner.
Emphasising that international action on tackling aviation emissions is essential given the global nature of the sector and that co-operation by states and aviation stakeholders is critical for reducing the aviation sector’s contribution to climate change, including its risks and impacts.
Recalling the Paris Agreement’s temperature goal of holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C.
Recognising that achieving net zero global CO2 emissions by 2050 will maximize the possibility of keeping the global average temperature increase below 1.5°C, and the need to align international efforts to reduce emissions from the aviation sector consistent with a pathway towards achieving this temperature limit.
Acknowledging that the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is the appropriate forum in which to address emissions from international aviation through in-sector and out-of-sector measures to implement short-, medium- and long-term goals, including the development of a global sustainability framework to support the deployment of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA).
Commit to:
1. Working together, both through ICAO and other complementary cooperative initiatives, to advance ambitious actions to reduce aviation CO2 emissions at a rate consistent with efforts to limit the global average temperature increase to 1.5°C.
2. Supporting the adoption by ICAO of an ambitious long-term aspirational goal consistent with the above-referenced temperature limit, and in view of the industry’s commitments towards net zero CO2 emissions by 2050.
3. Ensuring the maximum effectiveness of CORSIA, including by:
- supporting efforts at ICAO and working with other ICAO member states to implement and strengthen CORSIA as an important measure to address aviation emissions, including to expand participation in CORSIA, and participating in CORSIA as soon as possible, if our state has not done so already.
- taking steps domestically to implement Annex 16 Volume IV of the Chicago Convention as fully as possible and in a timely manner, including with respect to enforcement of domestic regulations, legislation, or Implementation arrangements.
- advancing the environmental ambition of the scheme in the course of undertaking the CORSIA Periodic Reviews.
- working to ensure that double counting is avoided through the host state’s application of corresponding adjustments in accounting for its nationally determined contribution under the Paris Agreement for the mitigation underlying all CORSIA Eligible Emissions Units and, where needed, CORSIA Eligible Fuels, used toward CORSIA compliance.
4. Promoting the development and deployment, through international and national measures, of sustainable aviation fuels that reduce lifecycle emissions and contribute to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in particular avoiding competition with food production for land use and water supply.
5. Promoting the development and deployment, through international and national measures, of innovative new low- and zero-carbon aircraft technologies that can reduce aviation CO2 emissions.
6. Preparing up-to-date state action plans detailing ambitious and concrete national action to reduce aviation emissions and submitting these plans to ICAO well in advance of the 41st ICAO Assembly, where such plans have not already been updated in line with ICAO Assembly Resolution A40-18, paragraph 11. [ The 41st ICAO Assembly will be held on 27 Sep–7 Oct 2022, where this draft will be debated, and perhaps agreed ].
7. Promoting capacity building support for the implementation of CORSIA and other ICAO climate measures, including to advance uptake of freely available tools and to expand regional expertise, accreditation and access to markets for sustainable aviation fuels and CORSIA Eligible Emissions Units.
8. Convening periodically at both ministerial and official levels with a view to advancing and reviewing progress on the above commitments.
We invite other states to commit to this declaration and work with us towards our shared objectives.
Signatories
Signed by the ministers and representatives of:
Burkina Faso
Canada
Costa Rica
Finland
France
Ireland
Japan
Kenya
Republic of Korea
Maldives
Morocco
Netherlands
New Zealand
Norway
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Turkey
United Kingdom
United States of America
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And !
Hoax website !
There is a brilliant hoax website, set up during COP, to say the things that the real coalition is not saying (and will not say).
Enjoy ……
International Aviation Climate Ambition Coalition
The International Aviation Climate Ambition Coalition (IACAC) is a ground-breaking new initiative to align the global aviation sector with the Paris Agreement.
IACAC is an initiative launched by the UK government on November 10th at
the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow.
The coalition brings together highly committed developed countries that will lead the way in reducing their aviation emissions.
The coalition’s signatory countries commit to the below five points of action.
Five commitments of the coalition [remember, this is a hoax !]
1. Halve air traffic emissions departing from signatory countries by 2030, from 2005 levels. This is in line with the Paris Agreement’s Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC) approach, and will allow improved equality of access to travel in developing countries, within the context of reducing global aviation emissions.
2. Include emissions from flight departures (both domestic and international) within signatory country’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), accounting for both CO2 and non-CO2 warming effects.
3. Introduce a minimum jet fuel tax of €0.33 per litre on flights between member states, with the revenue raised used for climate mitigation and adaptation in climate vulnerable countries.
4. Not use carbon offsetting as an emissions reduction measure. Coalition members are therefore raising the ambition beyond that previously agreed with the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) within the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).
5. Ban crop-based aviation biofuel. This involves the commitment to strengthen CORSIA’s sustainability criteria for Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).
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Founding Signatory Countries:
Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK, USA
More countries are still to join the Coalition.
…. and there is more ….
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